NYC Financial Investor Pleads Guilty To Tax Charge

• by New York State Department of Taxation and Finance

ALBANY, NY (06/23/2010)(readMedia)-- New York State Department of Taxation and Finance Acting Commissioner Jamie Woodward announced today that a Manhattan financial investor pled guilty recently to a misdemeanor tax charge of failing to file his 2007 New York State personal income tax return.

Peter Whitehead, 61, of 175 Riverside Drive, Manhattan, appeared before New York Supreme Court Judge M. Jackson on April 1 and pled guilty to a one count of a violation of former Tax Law 1801(a) for failure to file his 2007 state personal income tax return.

An investigation conducted jointly by the Tax Department and the Manhattan District Attorney's Office revealed that Whitehead failed to file his New York State and New York City personal income tax returns for tax years 2000 through 2008. Based on the investigation and as a condition of his plea, Whitehead agreed to pay $3,062,486 in outstanding personal income tax liability, including accrued interest and penalties. Whitehead has paid $1,774,228 toward the tax liability.

Whitehead was sentenced to a conditional discharge and paid a criminal fine of $10,000.

"The Department is committed to seeing that the tax laws are equitably and impartially enforced and that all taxpayers, especially those who can most afford to do so, pay their fair share," said Acting Commissioner Jamie Woodward. "I would like to thank Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr., Gilda Mariani, the Chief of the Money Laundering & Tax Crimes Unit and their staffs for their work on this case."

"When individuals fail to file their tax returns, let alone pay their fair share, they put an extra burden on the honest taxpayers who are contributing to the well-being of the City and State," said District Attorney Vance.

Acting Commissioner Woodward added, "The State offers programs such as the Voluntary Disclosure and Compliance Program to encourage delinquent taxpayers to become compliant without facing criminal prosecution or civil penalty. It is hoped that this case will encourage such taxpayers to come forward and satisfy their tax obligation. For more information about these programs, go to the Department's website at www.nystax.gov."

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